The Beginning of Her Past
by EliseChevalier
Summary: A daughter of Apollo finds herself in the bizarre reality of being a demigod. A part of her past is haunting her, something she can't even remember. She knew her mother was hiding something, something important but she could not tell what. Curious and confused, she tries to unravel the clues her mother had left for her. Will it lead her to a revelation? Or will it be devastation?


**Most of the characters are OCs, a small bit are not but I've had their creators permission. Disclaimer: The Percy Jackson universe belongs to Rick Riordan. Chapter one is set somewhere between the Son of Neptune and the Mark of Athena. Enjoy :D**

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE**

**Elise's Point of View**

Elise sat alone on the sand as soon as she was done with Sword Fighting 101. She failed badly at it – not one sword felt balanced in her hands. All she could manage were clumsy swings and dangerously faulty slashes, and she even managed to almost stab one of her cabin mates in the gut with the sharp blade. After apologizing for about a dozen times, Elise decided that she better put the weapon down before another accident happened.

Her long hair loosened out of its braid, whipping insistently around her in the stubborn breeze. It was late afternoon in a late July evening, but it wasn't hot as she expected it to be. Perhaps the magical borders of the Camp Half-Blood could even control the heat, or perhaps it was just her imagination playing tricks. Ever since she discovered that she was a half-blood, that her father was Apollo – yes, _that_ Apollo – it always felt like that her mind was tricking her. Finding out that one of your parents is a god could be quite overwhelming for a fifteen year old girl.

She watched the waves break in the sand before her, not particularly conscious of her surroundings. Her thoughts went back to her home and her mother. Elise missed her. She hadn't seen Riya Chevalier in a long time. A too long time.

Almost mechanically, she pulled out the note her mother left and stared at it, trying to make sense of the words. Those six little words that means nothing to her. Somehow, she believed if she stared at it hard enough, the answer will just show up out of nowhere. Of course, it didn't work, leaving her as clueless as ever.

**_GO TO NEW YORK. FIND THE TIMEC_**

_New York_. What did she remember about New York?

Riya had never liked riddles – she was a straightforward woman – yet Timec was extremely vague. It had to be something simple but not too obvious. Probably something only they knew about. But what? Nothing came to mind. She knew she was not trying hard enough. If she was, then she would've found a solution by now. The note made as much sense as it did when she first found it hidden in her mother's diary.

Forget about solving the riddle, Elise hadn't even thought of how Chiron or the other camp leaders will let her leave just to chase a vague clue. With the all the things going on right now, she doubted they could afford to lose another demigod – even an untrained one like her.

Again, she was tempted to run away. The thought had occured to her. Still, the mad impulse was not enough to risk it, not after what happened last time. A demigod outside the camp, all alone, only brings trouble. Elise learned that the hard way. Unless you didn't count "stumbling across an empousa, nearly getting killed and bringing a potential enemy to camp" as a trouble, that was. So, sneaking out was not an option.

The only other way was to find someone who would like to accompany her.

Maybe she could ask one of her friends? She didn't really know anyone at camp besides the ones who traveled with her to camp that first time. Plus, who would waste their time to find out about her mother? Elise was a nobody who just happened to get the blame when she accidentally brought a Roman to camp. Not a rep she wanted to keep.

Elise needed someone. Someone who was bored enough to go find something unknown even to her. Maybe someone who cared for her enough? Seemed unlikely. She reckoned all these people at camp were supposed to be her extended family, but she didn't feel that just yet.

The thought brought her thinking about her adoptive family, the Frasers. How were they doing? Were they still looking for her? She should've at least said something or leave a quick note. They must be really worried right now.

With a sigh, she made a silent promise that she'll visit them as soon as she had the chance to leave the camp. At least when she went to New York.

The water splashed against the beach calmly, helping her to clear her head. It was relaxing, but her whole body was buzzing with anxiety. She had postponed this problem for quite some time, and at this rate, she'll never figure it out.

Elise held a fistful of sand, letting it flow down in a small rain of grains. It was how she felt nowadays – like everything was slipping through her fingers, leaving her with nothing to hold on besides the bits and pieces. Just some time ago, all she needed to worry about were her homework and school assignments and social life and whatnot. The typical teenager stuff. Everything had changed in such a short time. All because of a group of harpies decided that they wanted to attack her in the middle of a party. She barely survived that fight when an agent of Gaea decided to barge in out of nowhere. She still had nightmares about the hybrid bird-women and stone golems.

Everything was turning complicated and she felt like she was alone. With no one to talk to, Elise felt the pressure weighing down her shoulders, threatening to crush her spirits. She didn't want to feel lonely. Mom. Elise had never felt lonely with her around. The constant moves hadn't given her a chance to make many friends, but her mother had always been this constant aspect of her life.

But now, she's gone.

Elise missed her very much. Sometimes, she wanted to break down and cry until the tears won't come. But she couldn't, not with all these strangers all around her. Riya will never come back and that hurt Elise the most.

She had no one left. Not one person who truly cared about her. She had never felt so lonely and empty all her life. No mother, no father. It was unbearable.

People might say that her father was still around but that's not what she felt. She had never even seen him, much less know him. And to be honest, she wasn't thrilled to meet him. No, she knew that she'll scream at him, blaming him for everything that had happened to her. He didn't love Riya or Elise. He left them, didn't he?

To make it all worse, her dreams were back to haunt her. It was the same one every time. And always, it left her gasping on her bed. She knew that it must be important but she couldn't even make sense of it.

She closed her eyes, envisioning her dream.

* * *

A stunning girl with long, dark hair and piercing eyes. She was wearing some sort of medieval-era dress. Her silvery glow gave her away as one of the Huntresses. A graceful silver bow was in her hand, and Elise could see the silver arrows protruding from behind her back. _"They're hunting for you! You need to go_. _GO!"_

The girl said that every time.

The next moment, Elise realized that they were in an underground tunnel. Her eyes caught the faded colors of a graffiti – a clear sign that it was modern, making the other girl stand out even more. The girl had her back on Elise, but it was clear that the girl had just fought moments ago – her dress was caked in mud and blood, the fabric torn and ruined. Suddenly, the girl whipped around to face her – at least that's what Elise first thought. But then she realized that the girl was focusing on something behind her. Elise whirled, trying to make sense of what the girl was seeing; but she saw only darkness.

"Where is she?" a thunderous voice boomed.

The girl scoffed even though Elise could see her hands shaking. "Like I'll ever tell you."

Then the scene dissipated, forming into an entirely different one. Elise recognized the place as her mother's favorite diner in Seattle. Nothing was special about the diner, yet Riya seemed fond of it. Elise had had the suspicion that the place was somehow connected to her father. At least she hoped so. Why? It made her feel the teeniest bit closer to the father she never had.

The smell of coffee beans floated into her nose – almost like she was there in reality. She wasn't sure whether to be excited or scared. Elise still remembered the place clearly. Black and white tiles, a long table with chrome top lined with high stools, the old cashier lady counting the dollars slowly.

Every Sunday, Elise and her mother used to come here and talk for hours. To prevent the owner getting pissed off, Riya used to order a cup of coffee or a cake at hourly intervals. Elise had always favored the chocolate cake – which was the only acceptable food in the whole menu. They sat at the booth in the corner, isolated from the chaos of a busy diner. The dark leather couch sank down under her weight, annoying her out of her mind.

In her dream, the place was packed. But Elise could see Riya and the Huntress in a distance. They looked like they were disagreeing about something. Riya was talking calmly while the huntress looked like she was about to explode. It was an odd sight, seeing the worried look on a teen's face while her mother didn't look bothered in the least.

Without any warning, the glass beside them shattered. Screams filled the whole building as people slammed into each other, trying to find a place to shield themselves. The whole place erupted into chaos in mere seconds.

One woman and her son tried to get out. Elise wanted to scream at them to stop, since she knew what was about to happen, having seen the dream before. But she couldn't. She was only a spectator, a silent audience in the foreign memory that was not hers. Petrified and helpless, her dream-self stood watching as the pair ran out the door. The clear window gave her the full view of the street. A shrill shriek rang in her ears as a huge shadowy figure leap at the woman, yanking her away from the little boy.

Elise surged forward, only to find her feet were practically nailed to the floor.

Riya jumped out of the diner fearlessly, closely followed by the huntress. But before she could reach the boy, a black figure flashed between them.

Another scream broke the thick tension – it was high and innocent.

Even if she could, Elise didn't tear her eyes away from the body of the boy – torn apart. Thick red blood pooling on the ground with the remnants of what used to be a living child. Her gut clenched and heaved. If it wasn't a dream, she would've thrown up.

All of a sudden, the black figure formed mere inches in front of her. Elise wanted to scream, but all she could do was stare at the blood dripping from the creature's mouth. She couldn't even identify what it was before its claws raked her face.

* * *

She always woke up after that.

With a sigh, Elise pushed the thought aside, willing it to disappear. After viewing the same dream again and again, she was convinced that she had to go to New York more than ever. And fast. She couldn't spend another day just training when there was something out there, waiting for her. Sadly, it wasn't that easy.

Out of frustration, she screamed at the sun. Her father was being no help at all. He claimed her, but she suspected that it was only because he made a promise to Percy Jackson – like every other god – to claim his demigod children. It was not simply out of love or care or even his conscience. The gods just didn't want the Titan War accident to happen again. Even then, Elise still had to deal with the attack. Apollo just _had_ to wait until she got attacked by a group of flesh-eating bird-women. And from what she heard, Apollo preferred to look and act like a careless teenager. He was _such_ a lovely father.

"You know, screaming at nothing can look pretty nuts – even to us, demigods." An unfamiliar voice broke her thoughts. Quickly, she stuffed the paper into the front pocket of her shorts and turned her head, not expecting the sight she was seeing.

It was a boy, probably older than her, wearing an orange T-shirt just like hers. His lips were pulled into an amused smirk. As much as she hated to admit it, she thought he was very handsome with his messy light brown hair and green eyes. She was grateful of the dying light as she felt her cheeks warming up.

Elise recognized him as one of Nike's children. They never really had an actual conversation, but he had helped her a couple of times with spear-throwing and swords – giving her pointers, showing her the right stance – whenever the Apollo Cabin shared a class with the Nike.

"You're Elise, right?" he started. "You're pretty famous around here."

He ran his fingers through his hair. As he shifted his footing, she noticed that even that small move was firm and graceful.

She sighed. "Lovely, really, having people know me because I get into troubles. And may I ask how you recognized me?"

Of course, she should've known. No one could possibly forget her little accident – alright, maybe not so _little_ – but she just never imagined it would spread _that_ fast. Especially considering that there were a lot more interesting things to talk about, like maybe the evil Mother Earth who was planning on destroying the Western Civilization.

The boy laughed and sat down beside her. Elise didn't protest but she scooted away from him a bit. "Your eyes are not exactly normal, in case you didn't notice." He was scrutinizing her and she squirmed under his gaze.

Even when she knew that he didn't mean any harm, she couldn't stop herself from looking away. Her eyes had always been a touchy subject for her. They had always taken people's attention – for they were quite absurd. She had spent her childhood being mocked and called a freak. It wasn't enough that she had trouble reading and studying, and was an attention deficit, she just _had_ to have a mutation in her eyes.

He noticed her reaction and smiled even wider. "Don't get a lot of compliments, do you?" With his green eyes shining mischievously, he extended his hand.

"I'm Ian. Ian de Luca."

"Elise Chevalier." Gingerly, she shook his warm hand, suddenly wishing her palm hadn't sweat so much.

Ian didn't offer anything else so Elise turned her gaze back to the churning water. The sun had started to sink, casting warm colors in the sky. She imagined a shining golden chariot, acting as the sun. She had heard from her siblings that Apollo preferred a red Maserati, but it was harder for her to think of her father as someone driving a sports car.

"Why were you screaming, anyhow?" he asked suddenly.

"None of your business," Elise snapped. She immediately regretted that it came out so sharp and well, snappish, but if it kept the questions out, she would have no problem doing it again. Sensing her mood, Ian nodded and said nothing. She half-expected him to get up and leave but he stayed silent and unmoving.

Once again, Elise ran her fingers across the gritty sand. The Long Island Sound was a nice place, she decided. No one really came here that much, and she appreciated the silence Ian gave her. But she didn't feel very comfortable with him around; he made her feel a little skittish. But then, Elise felt that way with nearly everyone.

They sat in silence for a while until he decided to ask her, "If I'm not wrong, I'm sure you're an Apollo kid." When she nodded, he didn't waste any time asking. "You want to be my partner for tonight?"

Elise pricked up at the idea. She had heard of the game they were to play tonight. Everyone had been asked to find a game partner of the opposite gender from a different cabin. The new game was also supposed to be her first game since arrival, and she was curious to see how it would turn out. Elise had not let herself dwell on it, even considering not to participate at all. Still, she wanted to play. She just hoped that someone would ask her.

And apparently, someone just did.

Ian saw her bewilderment. "I was planning to ask one of the Apollo girls and lucky enough I met you." He shrugged like it was nothing. His tone was surprisingly sincere.

Her eyes widened. "Me?"

"Yeah, why not?" he said with a shrug. "I've seen that you're can be an extraordinarily good shot – even for an Apollo kid. So I'm guessing that is a yes?"

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**Probably not so great but, what the heck? Anyway feel free to comment or critique, but please, no flame :D**


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